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 Rude
Osolnik died at his home on Poverty Ridge, in Berea on November
18, 2001. He was 86. Osolnik was widely admired as one of the
finest wood turners in America and his workshops and seminars
were in demand around the world. The Queen of England was presented
one of his bowls by the US Government. His bowls and signature
candlesticks are collector's items and his pieces are in the permanent
collections of the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian, the Boston
Museum of Fine Arts, Atlanta's High Museum and the Museum of Science
and Industry in Chicago, The Yale Museum, The Speed Museum, The
Kentucky History Museum, The Mayo Clinic, The Connell Gallery
and many other fine institutions. In 1992, he was presented the
Milner Award, the Governor's Award for Lifetime Achievement by
then Governor Brereton Jones. He is honored by the Commonwealth
of Kentucky which presents the Osolnik Award each year to a selected
Kentucky artist.
Osolnik was born on March 4, 1915 in Dawson, NM, the son of Slovenian
immigrants. The family settled in Johnston City, Illinois where
Rude learned wood turning in high school. He attended Bradley
University in Peoria, IL and received both a BA and MA. In 1937
he accepted a teaching position at Berea College in the Industrial
Arts Department. He later became Chairman of the Industrial Arts
Department and for awhile ran the Woodcraft Department. He was
also the Fire Chief of Berea in the fifties. He taught thousands
of students over the course of 40 years at the college. Except
for his service in the US Navy in the Pacific during WWII, he
lived and worked the rest of his life in Berea.
In 1938, he married Berea graduate, Daphne Francis of Carr Creek,
KY, who was his partner in Osolnik Originals until her death in
1988.
In the 60's and 70's, Osolnik was a leader of the Southern Highland
Handicraft Guild and helped found the Kentucky Guild of Artists
and Craftsmen having served both as President. He was one of the
architects of The Kentucky Guild Train that first started promoting
Kentucky crafts. In 1982, he started the ongoing Berea Crafts
Festival.
He is survived by his children, Maureen, Michael, Joseph, Sharon
and David. And five grandchildren and his sister, Mary Akramovich.
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